setter

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a long-haired hunting dog trained to indicate the location of game birds

   The setter froze beside the hedge when it caught the scent of a grouse.

2. 2
   noun

   a person who devises or establishes a task, question, standard, or similar thing

   The exam setter checked every question for ambiguity before publication.

3. 3
   noun

   a person who arranges written material in type

   The setter prepared the final column of type for the evening edition.

From Middle English settere, an agent noun formed from set and -er. The hunting dog is so called because it was trained to 'set,' or crouch rigidly, on locating game; other senses name a person who sets type, questions, standards, or objects in place.

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